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Ukraine Strikes Deep into Russia with Drones Amid Peace Talks
Confirmed
In Short: The attack, described by United24 as the deepest Ukrainian drone strike inside Russia since the full-scale invasion in February 2022, came as U.S. peace envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Ukrainian drones struck deep into Russia’s Arctic north Wednesday, hitting an industrial facility in Novy Urengoy, a city in Russia’s key natural gas region.
More than 16,800 Ukrainian civilians have been killed and more than 51,000 wounded since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, according to the U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.
Artem Zhoga, Putin’s envoy to Russia’s Urals Federal District, said a Ukrainian drone had attempted to strike a fuel-and-energy facility in Yamal, according to Meduza.
About 80% of Russia’s natural gas is extracted in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.
Russian authorities said four people, including a child, were killed and 29 wounded in the Novorossiysk attack.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv had used a range of missiles and drones in the attack, including Ukraine's domestically made Flamingo and Pelican missiles, to hit oil and logistics facilities.
Zelenskyy added, 'These are billions of dollars that sustain the war machine,' referring to the financial pressure Kyiv hopes to put on Russia's economy.
Kyiv aims to make the Russian public feel the war's consequences and pressure Putin into negotiating a peace settlement.
The roots of Russia's invasion of Ukraine go back decades and run deep.
Russia was holding its first wartime parliamentary election, virtually devoid of opposition to Putin's policies.
The State Department has approved a potential $2.68 billion sale of air defense equipment to Ukraine to bolster its defenses against Russian attacks.
Ukrainian forces struck a Russian Buk-M3 air defense complex, a Nebo-U radar station, and a drone production site in Severodonetsk, as well as command posts across occupied Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions.
What this adds
The attack on Novy Urengoy is the deepest Ukrainian drone strike inside Russia since the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The State Department has approved a potential $2.68 billion sale of air defense equipment to Ukraine to bolster its defenses against Russian attacks.
The roots of Russia's invasion of Ukraine go back decades and run deep.
Russia was holding its first wartime parliamentary election, virtually devoid of opposition to Putin's policies.
Background
Ukrainian forces launched more than 1,000 drones toward Russia, including Moscow, as peace negotiations continued.
The State Department has approved a potential $2.68 billion sale of air defense equipment to Ukraine to bolster its defenses against Russian attacks.
What's confirmed
- Fox News reporter Stephanie Bennett has the latest on U.S. peace envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the Trump administration pushes to revive stalled peace negotiations, with discussions focusing on a potential path toward ending the war and broader diplomatic efforts on 'Special Report.' Ukrainian drones struck deep into Russia’s Arctic north Wednesday, sparking a fire at an industrial facility in Novy Urengoy, a city in the heart of Russia’s most important natural-gas producing region.
- A rescuer works at the site of a Russian drone strike in Dnipro, Ukraine, in a picture released on April 30. (Governor of Dnipropetrovsk Regional Military Civil Administration Serhiy Lysak via Telegram/Handout via Reuters) United24 described Wednesday’s attack as the deepest Ukrainian drone strike inside Russia since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
What's still developing
- Russia resumed major missile and drone attacks on Kyiv shortly after the American delegation left Ukraine, killing five people and wounding 35 on Tuesday, Reuters reported.
- Smoke and flames rise over Moscow on June 18, 2026, following a Ukrainian drone attack that hit the Kapotnya oil refinery and other targets in the Russian capital. (East2West) But the source said Russian officials can interpret Western outreach differently.
- "Whenever you talk with them, they consider that this is a Western weakness," the source said, adding that the assessment was based in part on informal contacts with Russian officials.
- The source also said Putin’s recent emphasis on Russian "military progress in Ukraine" appeared aimed in part at Washington, projecting strength as U.S. officials seek to revive negotiations.
- Ukrainian defense manufacturer Fire Point appeared to claim involvement, posting: "Guess who covered more than 3,300 km and successfully hit the target." The extraordinary strike comes as Washington makes a renewed push to end the more than four-year war even as Russia and Ukraine intensify long-range attacks on each other.
- Moscow's mayor described the wave of drones as the "largest ever" attack on the Russian capital and said there had been damage to a Moscow oil refinery and a residential building.
- Russia was also holding the vote in the four Ukrainian regions that Moscow illegally annexed after the war began but still doesn't fully control, and in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014.
- Norway Seizes Russian Vessel Professor Molchanov in Svalbard to Enforce Naftogaz $4.22B Award NATO Deploys Turkish Fighter Aircraft After Ukrainian Drones Enter Estonian Airspace Donald Trump said his special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are travelling this weekend to Moscow and Kyiv with a proposal to “end the war,” as the diplomatic effort aims to revive talks between Ukraine and Russia.
- Zelensky also said a Russian drone attacked the headquarters of Ukraine’s security service SBU in the center of Kyiv on Friday, and Russian officials did not comment immediately on the ceasefire proposal.
- The BBC said Putin told an international economic forum on Thursday that “there are chances” a peace deal could be reached, but he insisted “First of all, Moscow and Kyiv must agree between themselves,” while showing no sign of backing down from demands that include more territorial concessions from Ukraine.
- Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv is ready to agree to a truce covering attacks on energy infrastructure and the Black Sea.
- Sybiha also said Ukraine was preparing for a meeting between Zelenskyy and Trump on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly this month.
Sources
- Fox Newslink
- NPRlink
- Newsdaylink
- Warpbeatlink
- Newscordlink
- Al Jazeeralink
- AP Newslink
- Newsweeklink
- Englishlink
- Kyivindependentlink
- Washingtonexaminerlink
- Kyivpostlink
- Azernewslink
- Politicolink
- Sofxlink
- WarpBeat — background on Ukrainian Drones Strike Deep into Russia Amid Peace Talks link
- The New York Times — video link